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Specific Adoption Paperwork Prayer

July 7, 2011 By

Friends, family and prayer warriors,

Thank you so much for your intercession today. The information, ideas and solutions are flowing… It was a good day.

With the help of our Social Worker, Randy Barlow, we were able to submit the information that we believe is sufficient to answer the USCIS Nairobi’s request!

Please pray specifically that the USCIS Nairobi office would accept and approve our updated home study “AS IS” just like the USCIS Accra office accepted and approved our previous three home studies.

The previous three home studies and this new update are all virtually the same. For some reason, the first three were not questioned but a specific item in this fourth one is being questioned.

Encouraged and full of positive expectations! Glory be to the One who is above all powers, thrones, rulers and red tape! Let us hold steadfast in prayer!!!

Filed Under: China Adoption, Crowsons, Murphy, Prayer Needs Tagged With:

China Adoption Update – So Close!

June 1, 2011 By

One of our mentors and long-time friends encouraged us to focus on what “we know” and not let our minds wonder and speculate about what we don’t know. This encouragement has been very helpful and increased our confidence that this is going to work out and that God’s timing is going to be just perfect!

So, here’s what we know:

  • God has blessed our paperwork processing for over five years now. Beginning with the initial home study all the way through our last I-171h renewal. He has opened doors, providing us with contacts, brought people to our aide, given us wisdom and provided all the funds that we needed every step of the way.
  • We have been approved by the USCIS to adopt three times already (2006, 2008 and 2009).
  • We have been approved by the China Government to adopt.
  • Our FBI fingerprints have been taken and processed successfully four times.
  • God miraculously returned all of our adoption paperwork when it was left in a taxi in 2006.
  • The Kigali Embassy, USCIS Accra and Nairobi staff have been helpful and kind all along the way.
  • God has given us the patience and strength to wait for over five years.
  • We are within 2-3 months of receiving a referral from China and could possibly travel to China this fall.
  • China has referred children to families with LIDs through June 30, 2006. We are just 12 LID days away from receiving a referral. See our adoption page for an explanation of LIDs
  • In May of this year China referred 10 day’s worth of LIDs (June 21-30). This many LIDs have not been processed in over five years! If they continue this trend and refer another 10 days of LIDs in June then that would put them through July 10th. Again, our LID is July 12th which means we could possibly have a referal from China in July!
  • God has brought us this far and will carry us the rest of the way! We are so close!

Here’s the current situation:

  • Our third I-171h (approval from the USCIS to adopt a foreign born orphan) is expiring and we need to renew it. (We submit an I-600A application and if it’s approved then we receive an I-171h.)
  • When our 2nd I-171h expired we had moved to Rwanda and fell under the jurisdiction of the USCIS Nairobi Office (We were under the jurisdiction of the Accra, Ghana office while we were living in Togo.)
  • In 2009, when we asked the Nairobi office about our application to renew our paperwork, they told us that we had to submit our application with the office that initially processed our file. So, we mailed our updated police reports, home study, etc. to Accra, Ghana and they processed and renewed our I-171h.
  • In 2011, as our 3rd I-171h was about to expire, we sent our application back to the USCIS office in Accra.
  • After reviewing our paper work (they received it on March 15) they determined that we needed to file this application with the USCIS office in Nairobi and that they were sending our paperwork back to us. It arrived this past Monday, May 30th (2 1/2 months after they received it). I do not know why it took so long to make this determination, but it did. They did apologize for the omission and forwarded the email explanation on to the USCIS office in Nairobi.
  • After receiving the paperwork Monday (May 30), we quickly wrote new cover letters and reorganized the updated application documents and sent them to the USCIS Nairobi (Kenya) office yesterday (May 31st, Stephen’s Birthday) via FedEx. We took the picture above after we prayed over the paperwork and just before we headed to the FedEx office.
  • Now we must wait for the Nairobi office to process our paperwork. We have not had any contact with them by phone or email thus far. The Accra office was very good about communicating with us via email. We hope and pray that this will be the same for us with the Nairobi office.

Specific Prayer Requests:

  • That the person in charge at the USCIS Nairobi office would have our paperwork on his/her desk by this Friday June 3rd.
  • That the USCIS Nairobi office would communicate with us promptly via email or phone.
  • That God would grant us favor with the USCIS officials and staff so that our I-600A adoption application can be processed with expediency without complication.
  • That the officials would review our 4th I-600A application and updated paperwork by June 15th.
  • That the USCIS would approve our application, granting us a 4th and final I-171h.
  • That we would receive our I-171h before we receive a referral from China (This would be icing on the cake!).
  • That God would bless mine and Christine’s “nerves” as this is mentally and emotionally stressful!

We made double, triple, quadruple sure that all of our paperwork was in order. We had our FBI fingerprints taken and submitted months ago so they should have been cleared by now. We have paid all of our fees. Now, we just need the grace from the USCIS Nairobi office to process the application and grant us another I-171h! Pray that it is done in time so that we have approval in hand before our referral comes from China!!!

God has been and will continue to be faithful in answering our prayers. Let us remain steadfast on our knees until the very end. As Stephen put it last night in his prayer, “God, we can’t do this without You!”

Filed Under: China Adoption, Featured, Prayer Answers, Prayer Needs Tagged With: ,

China Adoption Update – Getting Closer!

April 1, 2011 By

Thank you for your faithful prayers for our adoption and the renewal of our USCIS paperwork. We have good news to report!

  • The US Embassy in Kigali was very gracious to us and allowed us to be fingerprinted here without having to travel to Kenya! Furthermore, they did the service for FREE and even mailed the fingerprint cards off to the FBI Nebraska Processing center for us!
  • All of police reports and various paperwork were successfully renewed and we sent off a “Renewal Application” to the USCIS office in Accra, Ghana a few weeks ago.
  • Our Home Study was successfully updated and has been FedExed to the USCIS office in Accra, Ghana.

Now, the wait, while they look at our 4th, yes 4th, application to bring a foreign born child into the US as our adopted daughter.

Our current USCIS paperwork expires April 20th so we are praying that the reviewing process will be successful and that we will be re-approved (hopefully for the last time!) by then.

Furthermore, and most exciting, is that today (April 1st) there is word that the latest batch of referrals from China cover the dates from June 9th through the 15th! That’s six days closer to our LID which is July 12! Meaning, if they continue on at this pace, we could possibly have a referral in 4-5 months…….. meaning we might get to bring our daughter home this year! Oh, the excitement….!!!

So, let us continue on in prayer, asking the Lord to continue to shorten those days until we can bring our precious daughter home!

If you like “rumors”, http://chinaadopttalk.com/ is where we keep up with the latest China Adoption News…

 

Filed Under: China Adoption, Crowsons, Featured, Murphy, Prayer, Prayer Answers, Prayer Needs Tagged With: ,

Adoption Paperwork Renewal

October 22, 2009 By

In answer to much prayer we received word today from the USCIS office in Ghana that our application to extend our I-600A was granted! Below is their official email. PTL! Thank you all so much for your prayers, encouragement and support!

Dear Murphy Crowson:

This is to inform you that your request for an extension of your previously approved I-600A has been granted.  The Form I-171H and original updated home study has been forwarded to you at your address in Kigali.

All other needed information has been forwarded to the Consular Section in Guangzhou by diplomatic pouch…

Embassy Guangzhou has also been copied on this mail.

Thank you,
USCIS, Accra

Filed Under: China Adoption, Prayer Answers Tagged With: ,

China Adoption Update: Fingerprints Cleared!!!

October 15, 2009 By

We received this email message from the USCIS in Accra, Ghana today:

Dear Murphy Crowson:

Your fingerprints have been cleared.  Your application is being reviewed and we expect to provide you with the determination by the end of next week (i.e.10/23/2009)

Thank you,
USCIS, Accra

PTL! Pray that as they review our application for the second renewal that they will approve us again to adopt a precious little girl from China!

Filed Under: China Adoption, Murphy, Prayer Answers, Prayer Needs Tagged With: ,

Family Update

October 8, 2009 By

Hey everyone, here’s a quick update on our family…

So much has happened it’s hard to even think about everything to tell you so I’ll just begin by saying random things and hopefully it will give you an idea of what’s going on here.

We had a huge Church Planting Movements conference this past August. Participants from 18 nations came and were deeply impacted. It was my second time through the training and was still just as impacted.

It set off a series of events that has had a big impact on our work and ministry in Rwanda. One of the focuses of the workshop was having a vision for the nation and not just sub-parts of a nation. After much thought, prayer and weeks of discussion the two teams currently in Rwanda have decided to form one strategy team for the entire nation of Rwanda rather than just specific individual areas of Rwanda. We still have our smaller teams for emotional, social and spiritual support but strategy-wise we are working together to formulate a strategy for reaching all of Rwanda.

We’ve had two strategy meetings all together as one big group to begin developing our vision and mission statements. They’ve gone really well and we are making exciting progress. They asked me to lead the discussion of the meetings which is fun but also challenging. It’s really important that we all agree to go in the direction that God wants us to go in! Lord please anoint us! Something to pray about!

The kids have been in school now for three weeks and are loving it! We thank God everyday for the opportunity that He opened up for us to go to ISK!

About five weeks ago Marley (our Golden Lab) had three precious puppies. Everyday they’re getting bigger and bigger and are, OH SO CUTE!

Language learning is still a struggle but we are making progress, a little everyday. We are at a point now where we’ve learned enough grammar that conversations are starting to make sense and we can communicate more.

Christine and I are beginning to spend more time with our neighbors. This was a struggle because they go to work at 7am and return at 7pm and we never see them! So, we had a brilliant idea, go to their work place and spend the day with them. So, we’ve done that several times now and it’s been awesome! They operate an office supply shop downtown. So we went and sat in their shop and talked in Kinyarwanda for hours with them. They asked us questions and we asked them questions. (We went separately by the way). It’s been encouraging. They’re educated business people and committed Christians. This week Christine and the lady talked about visiting all of our other neighbors. So, relationships are getting deeper as our language abilities development and that encouraging. Boy is it hard! We are praying for Christ’s perseverance in all things.

Still no news on our adoption paperwork. We’re waiting for our fingerprint cards to get to the FBI center in Nebraska and be cleared….waiting….waiting….

Marty and I are planning to take a trip to visit Christians in Togo the last week of November. Pray that this trip will be a great blessing and encouragement to our brothers and sisters there!

Ok, was that enough rambling to give you an idea of what’s going on here?

We love you and appreciate all of your prayers!

Murphy (and family)

Filed Under: Murphy, Prayer Answers, Prayer Needs, Rwanda Tagged With: , , , ,

Fingerprint Cards…Nebraska

September 10, 2009 By

Thank you for praying for us this week.

We heard from the US Consulate in Kigali that she sent our fingerprint cards directly to the DHS processing center in Nebraska via diplomatic pouch on September 1.

This is actually the BEST and QUICKEST solution that we could imagine!

Thank you Jesus!

Filed Under: China Adoption, Murphy, Prayer Answers, Prayer Needs Tagged With: ,

China Adoption Update: Fingerprint Cards

September 8, 2009 By

It’s been two weeks since we had our fingerprints taken in Kigali in order to process our FBI Clearance. All of the paperwork necessary to renew our USCIS Approval to Adopt an Orphan from overseas was successfully submitted on time a little over a month ago. We are now waiting for FBI Clearance, thus the fingerprint cards.

We were blessed that the USCIS in Nairobi arranged for us to have our fingerprints taken in Kigali (rather than having to fly to Nairobi).

We were told by the USCIS in Accra to mail the fingerprint cards directly to them. However, the US Consular in Kigali said that she had different instructions as to where they need to go and would not let us have them to mail to the USCIS in Accra.

It’s been two weeks now and we’ve had no word as to the status of the fingerprint cards. We pray every night that the Lord would assign an angel to hand deliver those cards wherever they need to be.

Our China Adoption is dependent on many things. Having FBI clearance through successful fingerprint processing is one of those. Without this clearance our adoption stops where it is. So, you can see how important this is.

This morning I wrote (again) the USCIS offices in Nairobi and Accra as well as the Consulate in Kigali asking for any information as to the whereabouts of the fingerprint cards. Please join us in prayer today asking the Lord to make sure that those fingerprint cards get to the place where they need to go AND that they will be processed properly and our FBI police clearance granted quickly.

Thank you for your prayers…they’re helping us bring our daughter home.

Filed Under: China Adoption, Murphy, Prayer Needs Tagged With: ,

China Adoption – FBI Fingerprints

August 11, 2009 By

We recently re-applied to renew our USCIS I-171h approval to immigrate a foreign born orphan into the US  (i.e. adopt a little girl from China). The USCIS Accra received our application and sent a request to the FBI to re-submit our old fingerprint cards for processing to see if we have any FBI records on file.

The response from the FBI was that our fingerprint cards could not be found. So, the USCIS Accra office told us that we need to be re-fingerprinted at the nearest US Consulate.

Today, we went to the US Embassy here in Kigali and the Consular said that their office in Kigali does not have the authority to do the fingerprints. The nearest place to do the fingerprints is in Nairobi, Kenya.

Guess what, we now have to fly to Nairobi, Kenya, make an appointment with the USCIS office there to be re-fingerprinted, then fly back to Kigali…. It’s interesting to discover all of the twists and turns that this adoption is taking us on.

When this is done, we will be one step closer to bringing our daughter home. Smooth out the road ahead of us Lord Jesus!

Filed Under: China Adoption, Murphy, Prayer Needs Tagged With: ,

China Adoption Update

July 22, 2009 By

It’s been awhile since we updated everyone on how our Adoption in China Process is going. That’s basically because not much has changed except that more time has gone by and now our USCIS paperwork is expiring for the second time. Each time we apply to the USCIS to bring a foreign born child into the US as a citizen the approved application lasts for 18 months. Well, our second 18 month period ends next month. So, it’s time to apply again.

Since our first two applications were adjudicated (I love that term!) by the USCIS office in Accra, Ghana, all of our subsequent applications must also be sent there, even though we are living in Rwanda. Both the USCIS Nairobi and Accra offices have been VERY helpful this time around. They’re answering emails within hours and answering all of my questions. This is such a blessing for which we are very thankful!

We’ve spent the last two months updating police reports, supporting documents and our home study to get ready to reapply. Today I finished getting everything together. Tomorrow we will FedEx the application and supporting documents to the other side of Africa.

Everytime I put this paperwork together I’m reminded of the AMAZING MIRACLE that the Lord did for us three years ago in Accra, Ghana. Click here to read the story. Thank you Jesus for answering our prayers and coming to our aide!

Pray that this is the last time that we have to do this paperwork! Lord, please speed things up in China so we can bring our daughter home!

Just to let you share in the joy of our paperwork, here is a list of all of the documents that we had to put together for this third application.

  • Crowson’s Request for One-Time, No-Charge Extension to the current approved Form I-600A.
  • Crowson Home Study & Supporting Documents – Updated July, 2009.
  • USCIS Documents:
    • Updated I-600A.
    • Copy of USCIS NAIROBI’s email explaining that this I-600A needs to be adjudicated by the USCIS ACCRA office.
    • Photocopy of expiring CIS Approval Notice (Expires 08/20/2009).
    • Photocopy of expired CIS Approval Notice (Expired 11/30/2007).
    • Photocopy of two previous I-600 Petition Fees Paid Receipts.
  • Murphy and Christine’s Marriage License and Identity papers
    • Crowson’s Marriage License
    • Murphy’s Birth Certificate
    • Christine’s Birth Certificate
    • Murphy’s U.S. Passport
    • Christine’s U.S. Passport
  • Murphy’s Police Clearances (Updated)
    • Murphy’s Police Clearance and Child Abuse Registry Check from Texas, our previous U.S. Residence.
    • Murphy’s Police Clearance from Rwanda (where we are currently living) translated in English stapled to the translator’s certification.
    • Murphy’s Police Clearance from Rwanda (in French).
    • Murphy’s Police Clearance from Togo translated in English stapled to the translator’s certification.
    • Murphy’s Police Clearance from Togo, where we lived prior to Rwanda (in French).
    • Murphy’s Police Clearance from Benin translated into English with translator’s certification stamp.
    • Murphy’s Police Clearance from Benin, where we lived prior to Togo (in French).
    • Murphy’s Police Clearance from Arkansas (we have not returned to Arkansas since this report).
  • Christine’s Police Clearances (Updated)
    • Christine’s Police Clearance and Child Abuse Registry Check from Texas, our previous U.S. Residence.
    • Christine’s Police Clearance from Rwanda (where we are currently living) translated in English stapled to the translator’s certification.
    • Christine’s Police Clearance from Rwanda (in French).
    • Christine’s Police Clearance from Togo translated in English stapled to the translator’s certification.
    • Christine’s Police Clearance from Togo, where we lived prior to Rwanda (in French).
    • Christine’s Police Clearance from Benin translated into English with translator’s certification stamp.
    • Christine’s Police Clearance from Benin, where we lived prior to Togo (in French).
    • Christine’s Police Clearance from Arkansas (we have not returned to Arkansas since this report).
Filed Under: China Adoption, Murphy, Prayer Needs Tagged With: , ,